An American woman went missing while on vacation in Indonesia on a diving trip, and her body was found inside a shark's stomach, according to a friend of the woman.
According to a report in Asia Pacific Press, Colleen Monfore, 68, was diving with friends near Pulau Leong Island off the coast of Maluku province in southwestern Indonesia on September 26 when she failed to resurface. It is said that
Two weeks after Montforet disappeared in tropical waters, a fisherman found the shark in distress and killed it. After cutting open the shark's belly, the fishermen discovered what they believed to be Monforet's body, along with a wetsuit and swimsuit.
Initial reports said a shark attacked and ate Monforet, but friends of the Michigan woman say the evidence so far suggests this is likely false.
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Colleen Monfore, 68, was diving near Leon Island off the coast of Maluku province in southwestern Indonesia on September 26 when she failed to resurface. (Asia Pacific Press)
Kim Sass, who wrote in a Facebook post that Monforet was a “very good friend,” said what is known about the incident and that Monforet likely died from medical problems while diving. are listed.
Sass wrote that fishermen caught the shark around Oct. 4 near the Southeast Asian country of Timor-Leste, 110 miles from the dive spot where Monforet disappeared more than a week ago.
The fisherman who caught the shark said he found it in distress and killed it. When they cut open the shark's abdomen, they found human remains, a wetsuit, and a swimsuit. (Asia Pacific Press)
Sass said Monforet's body had been identified, but if she had been eaten by a shark when she went missing, it would not have been possible to identify her body.
Rescue teams searched for Monforet in tropical waters. (Asia Pacific Press)
It can take several days for a shark to completely digest a meal, but while shark stomachs “produce acids strong enough to dissolve metals,” “large bones and other indigestible materials are They are unable to pass through the stomach due to the small size of the opening into the intestines,'' the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources said.
Sass believes that the nearly eight-day period between Monforet's disappearance and the shark's discovery suggests that the shark swallowed him after he was already dead.
“Colleen's body has been identified. Her fingerprints (again, identifiable) are being used by the U.S. Embassy and local authorities to certify her death,” Sass wrote. “This would not have been possible if the shark had attacked her a few weeks ago.”
Researchers suspect the 7-foot shark was eaten by an even bigger shark
Sass said dive information, photos and witness statements from two other divers and the group's dive master show Monforet was in 24 feet of water when the group changed direction due to a change in current. That's what it means. Sass added that Monfore likely had half a tank of air at the time.
“There was some downdraft at the turnaround point, but it was manageable,” she wrote. “I did over 1,000 dives with this kind woman. She was an excellent diver. I don't think it was the environment that took her life, and certainly not the shark. ”
Exactly how Montforet died remains unclear.
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Indonesian authorities continue to investigate.
